Gamification

Games have become a large part of media in this generation. As play has become such an important part of most of our live through various ways such as games, sport, thrill-seeking, etc.
So let's start with the ways in which we play.

Attunement -  This is something that establishes a connection, such as a mother playing with her child.
Body - The movement of the body, which doesn't even have to be for any purpose, such as Dancing.
Object - Our curiosity in physical objects
Social - Playing with other for the social interaction
Imaginative - creating a scenario and acting to it in your head
Narrative - Reading a story and developing intellect
Transformative – imagining to transcend the current state

With the amount of technology, the amount of platforms for gaming has increased rapidly, with mobile games such as Angry Birds being played by millions, entry points into this gaming culture are easy to come by.

Games also have a lot of power over our minds, helping us learn, engaging our creativity, making us strive for success. But games are no longer the only source of this entertainment, as more and more media forms embrace the principals of play but not through a gaming aspect.

Reddit for example includes Karma, a virtual "score" for posting interesting comment, many individuals will contribute more to achieve these Karma points. But there are many examples, each embracing different aspects of play principals such as learning, narrative, creativity and more.